The relationship between positive patient experience in acute hospitals and person-centred care

Internationally, person-centred care has become a central tenet of many health and social care related policies and strategies. However, few studies exist that explicitly examine the linkage between patients’ perceptions of a person-centred care climate and patients’ experiences of care. This has been hampered by a dearth of instruments with acceptable psychometric properties. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between patients’ perceptions of person-centredness and their experiences of care. A cross sectional survey design was used to purposively sample (n = 345, 57.5%) patients from across 10 acute hospitals settings in Ireland. The data was collected Feb 2013-May 2013. Standardised instruments were used to measure patients’ perceptions of person-centredness and their experiences of care. Questionnaire packs were distributed to a sample of patients based on predetermined inclusion criteria. Completed questionnaires were returned in a sealed envelope. The instruments were psychometrically tested prior to full analysis of the results. Ethical approval was granted by Research Ethics Committees in all participating hospitals. The psychometric properties of both instruments were determined as satisfactory. There was a moderate positive and significant relationship between patients’ perceptions of a person-centred climate and patient experiences. Patients who perceived care as being more person-centred also reported a more positive patient experience. The emergence of new instruments designed to measure patients’ perceptions of person-centredness and patient experiences have been shown to have acceptable psychometric properties. This study demonstrates clear linkage between patients’ experiences of care and the key indicators of person-centred care.